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Cheerleader Thought She Messed Up The Routine - Then The Magic Happens

When all the other dancers switch up the routine, she's surprised, but that quickly turns into pure joy.

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Chicago Bulls / YouTube

Cheerleader Finds Herself At The Center Of A Huge Surprise In 3rd Quarter Show

By Colleen Annek

October 14, 2015

Ariana Rosado, a Luvabull cheerleader for the Chicago Bulls, will never have a performance quite as memorable as the one that occurred during a third-quarter timeout on Dec. 5, 2013, at a Bulls versus Miami Heat game. Halfway through the performance, Rosado found herself completely lost and confused in the middle of an unfamiliar routine, but it didn't take her long to figure out what was really happening.

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"As a dancer, you're told to just continue to go, no matter what happens in the music," Rosado told the Huffington Post in an interview.

Rosado was left in the dust when the music suddenly switched from the expected Britney Spears track to Bruno Mars' "Marry You." All of the other Luvabulls switched to a dance routine that Rosado had never learned, and she was left standing starkly still in the center of the court with the look of someone who is clearly confused.

Knowing that the show had to continue, Rosado was ready to gracefully walk off the court, but the Chicago Bulls' mascot, Benny the Bull, rushed out to make sure Rosado stayed. Benny gently led Rosado to a chair brought out to half court and had her sit down in the middle of the other Luvabulls' routine.

Rosado explained to the Huffington Post that this was when she first started to piece together what was really going on, saying, "I was in such shock that I really didn't even hear the song for a while until I actually sat down in the chair and paid attention to it. After that, I heard the song and I started kind of understanding what was going on. I kept on asking, 'Where's Shane? Where's Shane? Where's Shane? Where's my boyfriend?'"

Sure enough, Shane Zackery, Rosado's boyfriend, removed the Benny the Bull costume after a minute or so, confirming what she had been figuring out: This was her marriage proposal. After Zackery got down on one knee in front of the packed stadium, Rosado joyously said yes, and the couple was immediately bombarded with hugs and congratulations from the other Luvabulls.

When asked by the Huffington Post, Zackery explained that he pulled off the whole endeavor by first speaking to one of Rosado's teammates, who helped him get in contact with the Luvabulls' coach to get everything organized. He said that he picked this particular game because it happened to fall on his birthday and also because he is a huge LeBron James fan (James was playing for the Miami Heat at the time). Most importantly, he explained, he just wanted to do something wonderful for Rosado.

Rosado told the Huffington Post that she and Zackery met during their first year at St. Xavier University in Chicago, where both were majoring in business and had a lot of classes together. For two and a half years, Rosado and Zackery were simply friends, but then they started dating and continued to throughout the rest of their time at St. Xavier. When asked by Huffington Post if he was worried about Rosado rejecting him, Zackery assured that he and Rosado were both head over heels in love, and he was not worried about her saying no.

If you pay attention to Zackery's body language after he removes the mascot suit, it's clear that he's racked with nerves in front of so many people. Some YouTube commenters voice concern in comments on the actual YouTube video that Zackery's behavior after proposing was standoffish, unromantic or in some way selfish — for example, he does not have an over-the-top smile, and he lets go of Rosado's hand as they leave the stadium together — but judging by the way he talked about Rosado in his Huffington Post interview, it's safe to assume that these commenters are far from accurate.

Not everyone is a seasoned performer, like Rosado, comfortable in front of thousands of people and on live television; those circumstances are enough to make some people cry or run for cover out of anxiety, so what Zackery did is quite the feat. If he seemed rushed and distracted to get out of the stadium, it may have had something to do with the fact that he had just made himself vulnerable in front of thousands of strangers for the sake of creating the perfect surprise for the woman he loves.

Rosado and Zackery have won the hearts of thousands of strangers who have watched the video, many of whom left comments expressing amazement at how much Zackery was able to pull off and also at how genuinely surprised Rosado was. She may have been utterly confused and lost at the beginning of the performance, but she couldn't have looked happier by the end. The look of unbridled happiness, genuine surprise and pure love on Rosado's face as she saw Zackery emerge from the Benny costume was both beautiful and priceless; she may perform at other games, but none of them will be quite like this one.